Paul bombards his hearers with unity language: ‘like-minded’, ‘the same love’, ‘one in spirit and of one mind’ (v 2). In a time when believers are opposed (1:28–30), mutual support is vital. Paul calls them to hold together through all God does for and in them, making a list of what God gives them (v 1). It is not, then, that the Philippians must screw themselves up to put up with each other: their unity flows from God’s love and generosity to them.

At the centre of unity is humility (v 3). In the ancient world, humility is not a virtue: the philosopher Epictetus wrote: ‘Who wishes to live … humbly? No one.’ The word is given a completely different connotation by the life, teaching, and humiliating death of Jesus (see 2:8), for Jesus valued others at a cost, to the extent of dying for us. Paul contrasts humility with ‘selfish ambition’. Competitive self-promotion is normal in the Roman Empire, seeking honour or power or wealth, and looking down on those who don’t have these things. Instead, humility is about other-regard (v 3), about acting to benefit others (v 4) – having a mindset which values others and being ready to support and enable them to live for Christ.